Main menu

AMOUR Now Available For Licensing

Tams-Witmark Music Library is pleased to announce that AMOUR, the whimsical Broadway musical from composer Michel Legrand, is now available for licensing for the first time in the United States.

AMOUR, a charming two-act romantic fantasy featuring witty lyrics by Jeremy Sams and a fanciful libretto by Didier van Cauwelaert, is based on a beloved French short story written by Marcel Aymé in 1941.

Set in Paris shortly after World War II, AMOUR concerns the meek and unassuming Dusoleil; a beleaguered clerk who secretly pines for the lovely but unhappily married Isabelle. When Dusoleil inexplicably develops the ability to walk through walls, he becomes a Parisian Robin Hood, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. Word of the infamous thief spreads, intriguing Isabelle in particular, and shy Dusoleil faces a moral dilemma—will he continue his righteous campaign, or come clean and rescue Isabelle from her unhappiness?

The original Broadway production opened on October 20, 2002, starring Malcolm Gets as Dusoleil and Melissa Errico as Isabelle. The nine-actor cast also featured Norm Lewis, Lewis Cleale, and – making his Broadway debut – 2016 Tony nominee Christopher Fitzgerald. The production received five Tony nominations, including Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Score.

The original Playbill cover, Melissa Errico, and Malcolm Gets

The French production of the musical, titled Le Passe-Muraille, won the Parisian equivalent of the Tony award, the Prix Molière, in 1997. In 1989, French actor and sculptor Jean Marais immortalized the “passer through walls” in a Monmartre sculpture. The work, capturing Dusoleil passing through a wall, is built into a stone retainer in front of author Marcel Aymé’s house.

Jean Marais’ sculpture in Monmartre, Paris.

With its intimate cast and six-musician orchestra, AMOUR is ideal for community theater and college black-box productions. Light opera companies will particularly enjoy exploring the tuneful sung-through score. We look forward to seeing many new productions of this tuneful gem!